Aircraft Nosed Into Forest After Dropping Fire Retardant
F
rom the NTSB:
On June 17, 2004, at 5:47 p.m., a PZL-Mielec M-18 Dromader
airplane, N8214J, impacted terrain while maneuvering during
firefighting operations and was destroyed near St. George, Utah.
During the accident flight, the single engine airplane was under
the operational control of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), US
Department of Interior (DOI). The airplane was being operated with
a restricted category Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
airworthiness certificate. The purpose of the public-use flight was
to release a fire retardant over a wildland fire.
The airplane experienced a post-crash fire, and the commercial
pilot, a non-government employee, was fatally injured. Visual
meteorological conditions prevailed, and a Bureau-approved flight
plan had been filed for the local area flight that originated from
St. George about 5:30 p.m.
Ground and airborne eyewitnesses reported that the airplane had
just completed a fire retardant drop while flying less than 100
feet above down-sloping terrain. Immediately following the drop,
the airplane pitched down and descended steeply into wooded
terrain. The pilot did not report any problems prior to the
accident.
According to BLM representatives, the pilot had about 21,000
hours of experience, mostly in crop dusting. He had about 35 hours
in the Dromader M-18, of which about 25 hours were flown during
simulated and operational firefighting operations during last
year's fire season. The pilot also received three hours of
additional training by BLM recently in Safford, Arizona. The
accident flight was the pilot's third or fourth fire retardant drop
of the day. He had completed two drops on the day before the
accident. The accident pilot was a relief pilot; the primary pilot,
who had flown the accident airplane for three years, did not report
any problems with the airplane prior to the accident.
According to witnesses, the accident pilot performed two dry
runs over the intended area of drop before releasing the retardant
on the third pass. During the accident drop run, the pilot released
the retardant earlier than desired, and was off course.
Safety Board interviews with
Dromader pilots engaged in air tanker operations indicate that some
of the pilots were flying the drop run at an airspeed that was
slower than the recommended airspeed for a fire retardant drop. As
a result of this discrepancy, the National Program Manager for the
US single-engine air tanker fleet temporarily halted operation of
all 26 contracted Dromader M-18 airplanes for 2 days so that pilots
could refamiliarize themselves with the operational specifications
of the airplane. This "safety stand down" was lifted on Monday
morning, June 21, and the Dromader pilots are now continuing
firefighting operations. Eight of the 26 Dromaders are turbine
powered, and the rest are powered by radial engines (the accident
airplane was powered by a radial engine). The Dromaders make up
about one-third of the federal single-engine air tanker fleet of 79
airplanes.
A team of NTSB, FAA, DOI, and BLM investigators examined the
accident site and wreckage one day after the accident. Physical
evidence at the site indicates that it impacted the ground in a
near vertical, nose-down attitude. No evidence of an in-flight
structural failure, flight control discrepancy, or obvious
catastrophic engine failure was noted at the site. The wreckage has
been recovered and will be examined in detail in Phoenix, Arizona,
by a team of Safety Board investigators later this week. The
airplane maintenance records were on board the airplane at the time
of the accident and were destroyed in the post-crash fire. Howard
Pages is the Investigator-in-Charge of this accident, and the NTSB
accident number is LAX04GA243.
This accident is the third fatal accident involving a Dromader
M-18 air tanker in the past 3 months. All three airplanes were
owned by the Montana-based company New Frontier Aviation. The first
accident occurred on March 16, 2004, near Safford, Arizona. The
purpose of the public-use flight was to practice a simulated fire
retardant drop. The airplane (N6259N) was destroyed, and the
commercial pilot, a non-government employee, was fatally injured.
Witnesses reported that the airplane was loaded with 400 gallons of
water in preparation for the aerial drop. While turning left to the
base leg, the airplane's engine was heard to "surge" two to three
times. Witnesses stated that the airplane assumed an "unusual
attitude" with "the right wing up and the nose down" until they
lost sight of the airplane behind a small ridge line. The
Investigator-in-Charge is Wayne Pollack, and the NTSB accident
number is LAX04TA161.
The second accident occurred on May 22, 2004. The airplane,
N117BS, was destroyed when it collided with mountainous terrain
near Bah Peak, Idaho, in adverse weather conditions. The airplane
was being operated as a visual flight rules (VFR) cross-country
flight under the provisions of 14 CFR 91, when the accident
occurred. At the time of the accident, the airplane was not being
operated by the BLM, but was being positioned to a location where
it would begin service for the BLM. The airline transport
pilot-in-command was fatally injured in the accident. No flight
plan was filed for the flight that originated from Dillon, Montana,
approximately one hour and 15 minutes prior to the accident. The
pilot's planned destination was Boise, Idaho. Dennis Hogenson is
the Investigator-in-Charge of this accident, and the NTSB accident
number is SEA04LA095.